Of Crooked Hands And Hourglass - Kris/Suho
Of Crooked Hands And Hourglass
Kris/Suho / PG-13 / 5400 words
The time Joonmyun is living in now is never his to begin with. It belongs to a certain blond head he keeps meeting in his dreams. (Sequel to Heaven Is An Arm Away. Please read that first!)
Kim Joonmyun was in his golden age of the 25th when he became the head of South Korea’s brightest company. It was also the year where he was diagnosed cancer, and had a little chase and run with the death. Kim Joonmyun did not cheat death, and did not know how to, in his golden age, but it was the age in which he got more time than he should have.
He is now living the time that is not his, but someone else’s.
Kim Joonmyun is now two years older than his golden age, and in those two late years of living, never once he misses a dream about a tall man with blond hair and a golden watch with two ticking crooked hands. The dreams used to give him the feelings of strangeness, later developing into a kind of paranoid, but soon replaced by the feelings of longing.
He longs for the blond hair and the mysterious smile he might never solve.
“I will always be watching my time.” Are the words Joonmyun hears in his head first tme in the morning at his wake, and the last ones he hears ringing in his head before he goes to sleep. During the day, only a name staying in the back of his head, too stubborn to be shaken off and soon becomes a part of Joonmyun’s life like it has always belonged there: Kris.
And Joonmyun knows by heart, that the life he is living now is never his to begin with.
“How are you feeling today?”
Joonmyun looks up from his drink to look at a familiar face, though now dominated by a teasing look instead of a worrying one like usual. He gives the other man an amused smile before he answers, as teasingly, “I thought you have stopped asking me that particular question.”
“It’s becoming a habit, isn’t it?” Baekhyun laughs. He pulls a stool next to Joonmyun and slides down to sit on it. His hand gestures to call the barista and orders a punch so easily that Joonmyun suspects it might not be the first time he orders the drink. Baekhyun turns to look at him, and Joonmyun feels a surge of nostalgic feeling. “But that is a question I ask as a friend, not a psychiatrist.”
“You are analyzing me, Byun, and I’m not going to let you do that,” Joonmyun pulls a mocking face.
“I might. But even if I do, the data I receive from you is totally confidential,” Baekhyun answers with a cheeky smile and twinkling eyes. He looks so good today with a leather jacket draped over his maroon shirt and a pair of jeans that are tight enough to make form of his firm butt. Joonmyun thinks that if he was not a patient and Baekhyun is just another stranger at the bar, he would have flirted on him by now.
The barista comes with Baekhyun’s punch, which he takes gladly, and Baekhyun offers him a toast. Toast is something that Joonmyun couldn’t really resist.
“Seriously though, how are you feeling?”
“Good enough, I’m allowed to have drinks again,” Joonmyun lifts up his glass for a good measure, but he gets smacked in the shoulder for that. His drink gets almost spilled. Joonmyun sends Baekhyun a glare that he hopes is intimidating enough, but judging from Baekhyun’s earthy laugh, he doesn’t succeed.
Joonmyun pictures the disapproving frown on his private doctor slash best friend’s face if he ever finds out that Joonmyun is out drinking tonight. He never directly disallows Joonmyun to go out drinking, but he has suggested taking the healthier way of living a lot of times. But it has been two years already, and Joonmyun thinks that he deserves the joy of drinking for all the effort he has done to resist the temptation of alcohol and coffee.
“That sounds like life,” Baekhyun laughs and gives a squeeze on Joonmyun’s shoulder; a friendly gesture. Joonmyun smiles. As he runs his fingers through his head, he realizes that his hair has successfully grown long after the operation. It reminds him of the days he has to cover his head with hats to hide his baldness due to chemotherapy.
“This is life,” Joonmyun says, smiling. Baekhyun nods approvingly. Both of them know that Joonmyun’s words mean so much deeper than that.
To cherish the time while he has it, is one thing Joonmyun learns.
And he does, in his second chance of life.
Joonmyun was offered back the top position of the company as soon as Kyungsoo gave him a green signal that it is okay for him to back going to work. He politely refused, and Jongin was beyond surprised. It looked like the younger man has been preparing for his demotion. But Joonmyun was thinking of more prospects for his younger brother and less for his half-broken body. He is now a mere worker in the company, and even though people keep gossiping about his decision, Joonmyun doesn’t give a damn.
His life now is brighter than what he used to have. Even Joonmyun himself is surprised to see the differences. The small, unimportant details are now becoming a whole kind of new experience. He has seen local boys playing soccer at an alley near his office before, but it is just now that he realizes that the boys have radiating smiles while they are playing. He has walked down the office’s corridor a lot of time, but it is just now that he realizes that there’s a crack before the turn to his room.
And it’s those small things that make Joonmyun even grateful for his additional time.
But the additional time is never truly his.
Joonmyun learns about time in his dream.
The blond head that has been bugging every single of his days is there, standing only a foot away from him. His clothing is the same with that one time Joonmyun met him in the antique shop, his eyes are as cold, and the smile is still the mysterious one. Joonmyun suddenly feels so nervous and vulnerable under those eyes, like the blonde could strip him with that gaze.
Joonmyun has to squint his eyes to see that the blonde has a small hourglass attached to a string that is circling around his neck. It is small, but the attention Joonmyun pays to it is huge. The blonde seems to realize this as he brings his hand up and strokes the hourglass with his long fingers, distracting Joonmyun with the movement.
“Interesting,” the blonde comments. Joonmyun glances up from the hourglass to the same face with same mysterious smile and same cold and deep eyes. His heart is beating so fast, and he doesn’t even know why. But he has spent most of his days daydreaming about the blonde and seeing him upclose now, even only in a dream, makes Joonmyun wants to burst out of feelings. “You are enjoying my time,” he adds.
“No!” Joonmyun’s lips are trembling slightly, his hands are curled into fists at his sides. He doesn’t know why, but as much as reality speaks otherwise, he doesn’t want to let the blonde thinks that he is enjoying the extended time. Maybe it’s rude, since it’s not his time.
“Oh?” The blonde’s eyebrows are quirked up. Joonmyun can’t determine whether it’s from surprise or from amusement, but he hopes that it’s not both.
“This is your time, I’m not supposed to enjoy it,” Joonmyun says.
The blonde puts his hand under his chin in a thoughtful way. His eyes are still piercing into Joonmyun’s that the shorter has to look away to hide from embarrassment.
“What if I gave it to you so you can enjoy it?”
“Did you?”
The blonde’s smile is softening, it sends warmth to every cells of Joonmyun’s body, “You are smart, Kim Joonmyun. I didn’t lend you my time if you weren’t worth it.”
Joonmyun bites on his lower lip, it’s a nervous gesture he inhabits since he was still a kid. His mother has scolded him a lot of time for that, but Joonmyun is always a child at heart that hold habits die hard.
“Why?” He looks up and meets the blonde’s eyes, this time holding a firmer gaze. “Why did you lend me your time?”
“Because you asked for it.”
“I wish I’m not dying anytime soon.”
“How much time is there left for me?”
“Can I have more time, Kyungsoo-ya?”
When Joonmyun opens his eyes-he doesn’t even realize he has them closed-, he is in his room, lying on his queen-sized bed with ragged breathes. Looming over him is the familiar figure of the blonde-Kris, his mind tells him. He gets trapped between the strong arms, but he doesn’t mind. In fact, it kind of feels good to him.
“I-“ Joonmyun is at loss for words. He turns his head away, because locking stares with Kris is suddenly too overwhelming.
He asked for time, and he got it.
The next question is, how?
He didn’t pray for it, not exactly. He was not a really religious person, and he didn’t send prayers to god in each ticking sound the clock’s hand makes. But he did wish for it, in his desperate state of being sick.
And a certain blond man granted his wish.
Who is this man?
“Who are you?” Joonmyun asks as he glances up at the man before him.
“I’m your eternal friend.”
The words sound heavy, but Joonmyun doesn’t really pay attention to it since there’s a pair of lips meeting his halfway. He closes his eyes and savors the feeling. As they kiss, Joonmyun questions his life decisions again because, damn, the every press of Kris’ lips against his own makes him feel whole and alive.
“That sounds like life.” Baekhyun’s voice resonates in his head. And Joonmyun has to agree that this feels like life, the one he has yearned for long. His hands quickly find their way to Kris’ shoulder blades, clutching onto the fabric that is covering his tall and lean body.
Eternal sounds like a sweet promise, Joonmyun thinks as Kris’ tongue delves into his mouth, stroking and searching for more contact. It has a nice ring to it, and it takes only immediately for Joonmyun to like the word.
Although, he has a feeling that he has heard the words being said before, by the same person.
“Time is a friend, an eternal one.”
When Joonmyun shots his eyes open, he stares into the empty whiteness of the ceilings. Kris is no longer there, but the feeling of his lips against Joonmyun’s skin is still there, too stubborn to go away.
Joonmyun has learned not to count the time, because time is much meaningless that way. But in the modern world he is living now, it would be hard not to steal a glance at the golden watch with crooked hands securely tied around his left wrist.
The chiming of the church’s bell has distracted him from his time counting. It is the day of his younger brother’s wedding, and as his older brother, Joonmyun has to look undeniably good today. The black suit tailored to fit his frame feels nice against his body, he has to give his mother credits for that.
He joins his brother as the wedding is about to start. Jongin looks truly happy, and Joonmyun feels so proud at that very moment. He gives Jongin a reassuring squeeze of on his shoulder, because his younger brother looks like he needs it. Their mother is watching with teary eyes. They are happy.
It has been another two years since his encounter with Kris, and Joonmyun starts to question the length of time the blond hair is lending him.
Nothing has changed much, except the dreams about the certain blond hair are even more vivid. Each night, Joonmyun would think about the feelings of lips against lips, skin against skin, the smell of Kris’ cologne, the heat pooled in his lower stomach as Kris nips against his collarbone. Each night, the imagination goes even wilder.
His body longs for the touches Kris left that one night. His body craves for more. Everytime he opens his eyes, he wishes that it were Kris’ face he sees first time in the morning instead of another pillow lying cold next to him.
Two years, and the feelings don’t change in the slightest bit.
Marriage is a sensitive issue. Jongin has hesitated about bringing the topic in, because he knew that their mother would want Joonmyun to marry first. But Joonmyun is not in the position to have interest in marriage. It takes a lot to convince their mother that it is okay for Jongin to marry.
And it is, truly, okay. Joonmyun is happy too, to see his younger brother being all grown up and responsible to take another big step in his life. He doesn’t feel envy even the slightest.
A lot of questioning eyes and whispers fall upon him as he walks down the aisle as his brother’s best man. He doesn’t need to hear to understand that it’s mostly the ‘When is the oldest son going to marry, then?’ questions heaving in the air. It is Jongin’s happy day, and Joonmyun needs to concentrate only for that. He needs to cherish that very moment.
It happens so fast, how Jongin recites the wedding vow and slides the ring into his partner’s finger. They seal the vow with kiss, and the crowd applauses, being happy for the newlywed couple. Joonmyun watches every single of the process, recording each minute and each second to his mind. This kind of thing only happens once in a lifetime, and he doesn’t want to miss it.
As the guests are divided into little groups of their own, Joonmyun skirts away from the crowd. He takes small walks towards a quiet corner at the back of the church, just before a beautiful garden that is tended with care.
This is where he meets time for the third time.
Kris is leaning against the stonewall of the church just casually. He is dressed neatly, like he is prepared to blend into the wedding. Joonmyun is a hundred percent sure that the blonde is not in the wedding’s guest list. Kris isn’t someone Jongin would know, or be friends with. He is not Jongin’s type. Jongin likes certainty, and Kris is never a certain thing. Because until now Joonmyun isn’t certain if he knows who is the man standing before him.
“Why are you here?” There is no hint of hesitation or nervousness in Joonmyun’s voice. He feels braver this time, like Kris is already familiar to him and no longer a stranger, like he has known Kris for a lifetime.
Kris chuckles, he is now walking towards Joonmyun. The gap between them is so little that Joonmyun can smell the faint hit of Kris’ cologne. Just a jerk of movement and Joonmyun would be in Kris’ arms already, but both of them stubbornly keep their hands to their sides.
“Congratulations for your brother’s wedding,” Kris says earnestly, and Joonmyun is touched.
“Thank you. I will rely that to him.” Joonmyun is assuming that Kris would never have contact with his brother. It is a selfish thought. He starts to feel guilty for having the thought.
“I honestly thought you would marry before him. You seem like the type.”
Joonmyun tilts his head slightly in confusion, “What type?”
“I don’t know, you just seem like it,” Kris shrugs. It is the first time Joonmyun sees him acting nervous. “So, why?”
“I guess I’m not up for that,” Joonmyun shies away from the piercing gaze again because suddenly it feels too much. He feels warm, due to the close distance between them despite that there’s still more room for use if they want to. “Besides, it’s not my own time to begin with.”
“I told you that I gave it to you so you can enjoy it. Why are you so stubborn? You should be happy with the extended time, because that’s what you asked for.”
“You don’t understand,” Joonmyun says hurriedly. Kris looks so intimidating, and he wants to dig a hole and bury himself in it, hiding from the powerful gaze. “This-the time, is yours.”
It takes a moment with heavy silence between them before it finally strikes Kris, creating an understanding between the two of them. Kris’ expression softens down, the eyes are not so much intimidating anymore. Joonmyun glances up nervously, afraid if his words go wrong and screw everything-anything-between them.
“It’s mine,” Kris whispers, leaning down just at Joonmyun’s ears so the shorter shivers as Kris’ warm breath meets his sensitive skin. He circles his arm around Joonmyun’s waist and pulls him closer. Now it’s almost skin-to-skin, if only the clothes don’t get in the way. Even being that close is not enough, both of them keep craving for more.
“Always yours,” Joonmyun mewls lightly as Kris pulls his lower lip between his teeth. The kiss is even better from the first time. It is more heated, more desperate, because now they know what to seek from each other. They bring each other to completion.
As their tongues glide together, they understand that it’s not only his time Joonmyun submits to Kris, but also the wholeness of himself-his everything. And he won’t regret this.
The church’s bell chimes again, bringing back Joonmyun to the surface of reality. When he opens his eyes, Kris is no longer there. He should have known, but still it hurts him to once again lose the figure. Tears are edging on his eyes, but he quickly wipes them away.
The breeze of wind messes up his neatly styled hair, bringing him a message he doesn’t even know he longs for:
“Until we meet again, Kim Joonmyun.”
“When?” He asks the wind. His lift his chin up in a hopeful way, because maybe the wind carries him the answer for that as well. But the wind doesn’t answer, leaving him feeling empty.
‘When’ turns out to be very soon.
Joonmyun doesn’t count the time, but he knows that it’s barely a month since his brother’s wedding. The happy and lovey dovey air is still heavy around. His mother smiles more often, and Joonmyun is happy to see that. He moves into his parents’ house because Jongin has to move out with his partner and build their own home.
Her mother is getting older, and she nags more. Joonmyun has a difficulty adapting as the target of all of her nags. He wonders how his younger brother could be immune to all of this. He secretly misses his wide and spacious apartment. He misses waking up not worrying about how he should face his mother with a strong expression because she would question him if it were otherwise.
This morning though, instead of the sound of alarm waking him up, a pair of strong hands shakes him out of his deep slumber. He wants to protest so bad, because he hates it when his beautiful dream is disturbed. But it would be considered as rude to his mother.
“What-Kris?” Joonmyun’s half-lidded eyes automatically shot up into a fully awake mode as he sees the familiar blond head. His mother is nowhere to see, so it must be the other man who shook him awake. One of his dreams is to wake up to Kris’ face in the morning and gets a good morning kiss. Now Kris is already here, but he doesn’t get a kiss.
Kris looks panicked. Never once in his life Joonmyun sees the blonde so out of his usual composed self. Joonmyun reaches out to stroke Kris’ cheekbones, causing the taller man to close his eyes and enjoy the ministrations.
“As much as I love the surprise of waking up to see you, I have a strong feeling that there is something wrong,” Joonmyun murmurs. “Why are you here?”
“He has found out,” Kris says as he flutters his eyes open. “I’m sorry. I was so selfish to think that I can keep you with me for a lifetime. I have broken so many rules of life, yet I still think that I can hide you away from him. You probably hate me now, and it’s okay, really.”
Joonmyun frowns, “Slow down. I don’t understand. What are you talking about? Who is he?”
“Death. He wants to take you away from me.”
“One rule is that you can not cheat death, but if time is your wish, I can lend you some of mine.”
“But I’m not cheating death.”
“No, but I am cheating him.” Kris looks so guilty. Joonmyun wants to hug him and reassures that everything is okay, but he knows it’s not. What happening now is beyond him, and he feels cheated.
“Kris, who are you really?” Joonmyun asks-no, he begs for the truth he deserves to know in his four years of living.
“I am The Time. The one who watches the ticking of the clocks. The man who makes sure that sun rises and sets in the right intervals. The shadow behind everyone’s head, because everyone needs time.” Kris looks more distance as he speaks, like he is no longer the man Joonmyun dreams about every night. “I became selfish, I want you for myself. I want to have you forever. I heard you asking for more time, and I granted that wish, simply because I want to keep you away from Death longer.”
“He is furious now, because the time I am giving you is too much. He was supposed to take you four years ago, but I didn’t let him. He is asking for you now, and I still don’t know if I can let you go. Having you by my side these four years had me spoiled, Joonmyun. I don’t want to lose you, not especially to him.”
Joonmyun’s brain is too small to digest all the information suddenly poured into his head. So instead of thinking, he settles on pressing a desperate kiss onto Kris’ lips instead. And it’s been proven that kiss is a great distractor.
“He is approaching,” Kris says, his voice is quavering. Joonmyun can sense the fear radiating from him. “I will bring you to a safe place.”
Kris pulls out the hourglass hiding behind his shirt. Joonmyun can finally sees that it’s golden, and has the same design with the watch Kris given him a long time ago.
“Turn it twice whenever Death is approaching, it will save you,” Kris hurriedly explains. He takes off the necklace from his neck and puts it around Joonmyun’s pale neck. The press of kiss against Joonmyun’s collarbone is totally accidental, but it’s a gesture that calms their nerves, somehow.
“Where will you be going then?” Joonmyun asks softly.
“I will face him, buying more time for you.”
“What if he kills you?”
“Then I die,” Kris inhales deeply. “If I die then everything is gonna be useless. The Chaos will be awakened, he will join Death in destroying the human civilization. Together, they bring the world to an end.”
Joonmyun shivers, the air is suddenly very chilly. Death is coming closer. “I can’t let that to happen, Kris. I’d better submit myself to death than to selfishly cause the world to end.”
He takes off the hourglass necklace Kris put on him earlier, and shoves it back to the blonde’s hand. Kris’s lips are pursed into a thin line. He doesn’t seem to be so keen to the idea.
“Why are you so stubborn, especially now?” There are tears pooling at the edge of Kris’ eyes. He looks so fragile and vulnerable now. Joonmyun pulls him into a tight, bone-crushing hug.
“I love you,” he whispers.
Joonmyun knows when The Death is coming.
Time stands still, but he is able to move and feel. At the corner of his eyes, he sees dark, blackness, and emptiness. The darkness starts to consume his room, black blotches appearing here and there before they pool together and makes it a complete block of blackness.
He thinks of his mother, and how she would be the first person to find his corpse lying in his bedroom. Maybe she would cry out loud, or even wail. Jongin’s complete happiness would be destroyed once the news reaches him. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun would be at loss, what was once they saved is never saved in the first place.
Kris.
As time freezes, Joonmyun understands on how much Death is stronger than Time. He learns that Death is really the end to everything, even to Time. When you are dead, time is no longer ticking. You don’t need to count the seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months; because there is no such thing anymore.
But time is also a version of hope. If you still have time, you are allowed to hope.
So Joonmyun hopes, that maybe in the next lifetime, he would be meet The Time again.
“Until we meet again, Kris.”
Joonmyun presses one last kiss to Kris’ forehead before the darkness starts to crawl onto his bed and consume him from the toe. The tears rolling down on his cheeks are warm, a contrary to the striking coldness creeping up his body. His body feels weak, like it is the cancer getting into him all over again.
Except this time, there will be no successful operation anymore. There’s only him, and the darkness consuming him. He closes his eyes, unable to take in anything again.
And that’s how Kim Joonmyun parts his way with time.
South Korea, year of 3056
Technology has advanced almost everything in human’s life. Without machine, life as a future human would be helpless. But not everyone could afford machines to support their daily lives. This is the start of New Seoul, a city built for those who are rich enough to pay for the machines and their maintenance costs. Almost everyone in New Seoul lives with a robot in their house, mostly for helping.
Humans are still humans, but they almost their humanities without them knowing.
Technology has made human lifeless. It’s always clean and punctual in New Seoul. They live according to the time they are allowed to. Everyone has a timepiece for their own, one that is customed to suit each individuals wearing them. Be late for a second, you might as well end your life there. The rate of suicide is becoming higher, because the pressure of living in the city is always haunting them.
Those who can’t stand advanced technologies prefer to stay safe in the Old Seoul, the broken city. The government doesn’t care about the city anymore, as they focus only to the New Seoul. Here in the abandoned city, they live an even more difficult life. It takes a great effort to have food smuggled from the New Seoul, and they are quite pricey. Beautiful buildings that are used to stand tall and proud in their times now only being a kind of reminder of those happy times.
In the secluded corner of the main street is where The Time is hiding.
It is an antique clock shop, one that people wouldn’t care about since the digital era has taken over their lives. In that certain shop is where you could still hear the ticking of the clock’s hands. But people has long forgotten the soothing sound of the ticking, and moved on to the handless clocks and watches instead.
The Time is patient, he never asks for anything as he keeps his eyes on the antique timepieces. He doesn’t mind the digital numbers planted on everyone’s wrist, but there are always times where he misses hearing the ticking sounds when he goes out to buy food or clothes.
He wishes that humans could live to cherish the time, and enjoy each seconds as they tick in.
There was once a human that lives up to his liking, that he showers the human with more time, thinking that it would bring them together for an even longer time. But The Time makes mistakes, too. And he is now left longing for the human again. He sometimes asks The Life if he would bring is human to live once again.
The Life’s stare against him is judging, but The Time doesn’t give up. He visits The Fate, asking if he could have a second chance. Fate has always been kind to him. This time though, she only smiles knowingly at him. And that’s all it takes for The Time to patiently wait inside his antique clock shop.
It is a rainy day and The Time doesn’t expect any visitors at this time. He is about to change the ‘open’ sign to ‘close’ when the bell at his door chimes, signaling a visitor coming in.
“I hope you’re still open?” The man smiles sheepishly. His jet-black hair is drenched wet, so is his pair of fine working suits. From his appearance, it is obvious that he is from the New Seoul.
“Yes, please come in.” The Time politely gestures his visitor to sit on one of the stools. He doesn’t really understand about technology, but he is sure there is a machine to instantly dry the drenched man before him. He just doesn’t have it. No one has machines in the Old Seoul. So he goes to the backroom and pulls out a coat. When he hands it over to the visitor, he looks genuinely surprised.
“Thank you. I will return it later.” He smiles, and The Time finds it so adorable. It’s like sunshine in the middle of darkness, like oasis in the middle of draught. “Why do I have a feeling that this is not the first time you’re lending me something?” The man asks, a hint of nervousness is clear on his face.
“I believe it’s the first time someone from New Seoul comes to my shop,” The Time answers simply. His smile is not leaving his face, the same old mysterious smile. “How may I help you, Sir?”
“Oh, I’m sorry!” There’s a faint pink blush blooming on both of the man’s cheeks. His nervous laugh sounds like a melody to The Time’s ears. The man fishes out something from his trousers’ pocket. It is a neatly folded handkerchief. The smell of the handkerchief brings a familiar feeling to him. “This watch died on me, but I can’t seem to fix it. I heard your shop could fix analog watches.”
The Time pays attention to the way the man unfolds the handkerchief. He wonders what kind of analog watch a citizen of New Seoul would have. But once the handkerchief is completely unfolded, his breath hitches. Lay in it a timepiece, one that The Time knows exactly where and how to get. It is a golden analog watch with exquisite design and crooked hands.
Once, it was his, but he gave it over to his most favorite human.
He reaches to touch the watch, the tremble of his fingers cannot deny the mixed feelings he has pooling in his lower stomach. At the first touch, a surge of memories enters his mind; jet-black hair, blinding smile, pale skin, warm voice.
“Kris.”
The name has a nice ring to his ears, and it is only today that The Time remembers that he once lived to another name.
He looks up, and it suddenly occurs to him why the man before him with the same jet-black hair, same blinding smile, same pale skin, and the same warm voice feels so familiar. He offers the man a soft smile, which is immediately returned. He makes a note to thank the fate later.
“I can fix it, but the cost is quite high,” The Time-Kris-says.
“How much?” The man looks worried.
“Time is priceless, you don’t buy it with money,” Kris starts reciting the familiar words, warmness spreading throughout his body. “I’m asking a lifetime with you, if that’s not a trouble.”
The man chuckles lightly, “No, definitely not a problem.”
And that’s all Kris takes to pull the man’s-Joonmyun’s, his mind reminds him-chin and kiss him like he always has. Together, they bring each other to completion.
“I love you. I never get to say that,” Kris whispers between the kisses.
Joonmyun smiles, and Kris is reminded why he is infatuated with this certain human all over again. “I love you, too.”
And that’s how time claims Kim Joonmyun once again.
--fin.
a/n: yay the sequel! this is more krisho than the previous instalment. i hope everyone is happy since this is a happy ending c:
this is totally unbeta-ed though, and i welcome any of you to help fixing my trashy grammar. sobs.
also, happy birthday bijae bb! i hope this counts as a birthday fic aksdhalksasd ♥ ♥ ♥
Kris/Suho / PG-13 / 5400 words
The time Joonmyun is living in now is never his to begin with. It belongs to a certain blond head he keeps meeting in his dreams. (Sequel to Heaven Is An Arm Away. Please read that first!)
Kim Joonmyun was in his golden age of the 25th when he became the head of South Korea’s brightest company. It was also the year where he was diagnosed cancer, and had a little chase and run with the death. Kim Joonmyun did not cheat death, and did not know how to, in his golden age, but it was the age in which he got more time than he should have.
He is now living the time that is not his, but someone else’s.
Kim Joonmyun is now two years older than his golden age, and in those two late years of living, never once he misses a dream about a tall man with blond hair and a golden watch with two ticking crooked hands. The dreams used to give him the feelings of strangeness, later developing into a kind of paranoid, but soon replaced by the feelings of longing.
He longs for the blond hair and the mysterious smile he might never solve.
“I will always be watching my time.” Are the words Joonmyun hears in his head first tme in the morning at his wake, and the last ones he hears ringing in his head before he goes to sleep. During the day, only a name staying in the back of his head, too stubborn to be shaken off and soon becomes a part of Joonmyun’s life like it has always belonged there: Kris.
And Joonmyun knows by heart, that the life he is living now is never his to begin with.
“How are you feeling today?”
Joonmyun looks up from his drink to look at a familiar face, though now dominated by a teasing look instead of a worrying one like usual. He gives the other man an amused smile before he answers, as teasingly, “I thought you have stopped asking me that particular question.”
“It’s becoming a habit, isn’t it?” Baekhyun laughs. He pulls a stool next to Joonmyun and slides down to sit on it. His hand gestures to call the barista and orders a punch so easily that Joonmyun suspects it might not be the first time he orders the drink. Baekhyun turns to look at him, and Joonmyun feels a surge of nostalgic feeling. “But that is a question I ask as a friend, not a psychiatrist.”
“You are analyzing me, Byun, and I’m not going to let you do that,” Joonmyun pulls a mocking face.
“I might. But even if I do, the data I receive from you is totally confidential,” Baekhyun answers with a cheeky smile and twinkling eyes. He looks so good today with a leather jacket draped over his maroon shirt and a pair of jeans that are tight enough to make form of his firm butt. Joonmyun thinks that if he was not a patient and Baekhyun is just another stranger at the bar, he would have flirted on him by now.
The barista comes with Baekhyun’s punch, which he takes gladly, and Baekhyun offers him a toast. Toast is something that Joonmyun couldn’t really resist.
“Seriously though, how are you feeling?”
“Good enough, I’m allowed to have drinks again,” Joonmyun lifts up his glass for a good measure, but he gets smacked in the shoulder for that. His drink gets almost spilled. Joonmyun sends Baekhyun a glare that he hopes is intimidating enough, but judging from Baekhyun’s earthy laugh, he doesn’t succeed.
Joonmyun pictures the disapproving frown on his private doctor slash best friend’s face if he ever finds out that Joonmyun is out drinking tonight. He never directly disallows Joonmyun to go out drinking, but he has suggested taking the healthier way of living a lot of times. But it has been two years already, and Joonmyun thinks that he deserves the joy of drinking for all the effort he has done to resist the temptation of alcohol and coffee.
“That sounds like life,” Baekhyun laughs and gives a squeeze on Joonmyun’s shoulder; a friendly gesture. Joonmyun smiles. As he runs his fingers through his head, he realizes that his hair has successfully grown long after the operation. It reminds him of the days he has to cover his head with hats to hide his baldness due to chemotherapy.
“This is life,” Joonmyun says, smiling. Baekhyun nods approvingly. Both of them know that Joonmyun’s words mean so much deeper than that.
To cherish the time while he has it, is one thing Joonmyun learns.
And he does, in his second chance of life.
Joonmyun was offered back the top position of the company as soon as Kyungsoo gave him a green signal that it is okay for him to back going to work. He politely refused, and Jongin was beyond surprised. It looked like the younger man has been preparing for his demotion. But Joonmyun was thinking of more prospects for his younger brother and less for his half-broken body. He is now a mere worker in the company, and even though people keep gossiping about his decision, Joonmyun doesn’t give a damn.
His life now is brighter than what he used to have. Even Joonmyun himself is surprised to see the differences. The small, unimportant details are now becoming a whole kind of new experience. He has seen local boys playing soccer at an alley near his office before, but it is just now that he realizes that the boys have radiating smiles while they are playing. He has walked down the office’s corridor a lot of time, but it is just now that he realizes that there’s a crack before the turn to his room.
And it’s those small things that make Joonmyun even grateful for his additional time.
But the additional time is never truly his.
Joonmyun learns about time in his dream.
The blond head that has been bugging every single of his days is there, standing only a foot away from him. His clothing is the same with that one time Joonmyun met him in the antique shop, his eyes are as cold, and the smile is still the mysterious one. Joonmyun suddenly feels so nervous and vulnerable under those eyes, like the blonde could strip him with that gaze.
Joonmyun has to squint his eyes to see that the blonde has a small hourglass attached to a string that is circling around his neck. It is small, but the attention Joonmyun pays to it is huge. The blonde seems to realize this as he brings his hand up and strokes the hourglass with his long fingers, distracting Joonmyun with the movement.
“Interesting,” the blonde comments. Joonmyun glances up from the hourglass to the same face with same mysterious smile and same cold and deep eyes. His heart is beating so fast, and he doesn’t even know why. But he has spent most of his days daydreaming about the blonde and seeing him upclose now, even only in a dream, makes Joonmyun wants to burst out of feelings. “You are enjoying my time,” he adds.
“No!” Joonmyun’s lips are trembling slightly, his hands are curled into fists at his sides. He doesn’t know why, but as much as reality speaks otherwise, he doesn’t want to let the blonde thinks that he is enjoying the extended time. Maybe it’s rude, since it’s not his time.
“Oh?” The blonde’s eyebrows are quirked up. Joonmyun can’t determine whether it’s from surprise or from amusement, but he hopes that it’s not both.
“This is your time, I’m not supposed to enjoy it,” Joonmyun says.
The blonde puts his hand under his chin in a thoughtful way. His eyes are still piercing into Joonmyun’s that the shorter has to look away to hide from embarrassment.
“What if I gave it to you so you can enjoy it?”
“Did you?”
The blonde’s smile is softening, it sends warmth to every cells of Joonmyun’s body, “You are smart, Kim Joonmyun. I didn’t lend you my time if you weren’t worth it.”
Joonmyun bites on his lower lip, it’s a nervous gesture he inhabits since he was still a kid. His mother has scolded him a lot of time for that, but Joonmyun is always a child at heart that hold habits die hard.
“Why?” He looks up and meets the blonde’s eyes, this time holding a firmer gaze. “Why did you lend me your time?”
“Because you asked for it.”
“I wish I’m not dying anytime soon.”
“How much time is there left for me?”
“Can I have more time, Kyungsoo-ya?”
When Joonmyun opens his eyes-he doesn’t even realize he has them closed-, he is in his room, lying on his queen-sized bed with ragged breathes. Looming over him is the familiar figure of the blonde-Kris, his mind tells him. He gets trapped between the strong arms, but he doesn’t mind. In fact, it kind of feels good to him.
“I-“ Joonmyun is at loss for words. He turns his head away, because locking stares with Kris is suddenly too overwhelming.
He asked for time, and he got it.
The next question is, how?
He didn’t pray for it, not exactly. He was not a really religious person, and he didn’t send prayers to god in each ticking sound the clock’s hand makes. But he did wish for it, in his desperate state of being sick.
And a certain blond man granted his wish.
Who is this man?
“Who are you?” Joonmyun asks as he glances up at the man before him.
“I’m your eternal friend.”
The words sound heavy, but Joonmyun doesn’t really pay attention to it since there’s a pair of lips meeting his halfway. He closes his eyes and savors the feeling. As they kiss, Joonmyun questions his life decisions again because, damn, the every press of Kris’ lips against his own makes him feel whole and alive.
“That sounds like life.” Baekhyun’s voice resonates in his head. And Joonmyun has to agree that this feels like life, the one he has yearned for long. His hands quickly find their way to Kris’ shoulder blades, clutching onto the fabric that is covering his tall and lean body.
Eternal sounds like a sweet promise, Joonmyun thinks as Kris’ tongue delves into his mouth, stroking and searching for more contact. It has a nice ring to it, and it takes only immediately for Joonmyun to like the word.
Although, he has a feeling that he has heard the words being said before, by the same person.
“Time is a friend, an eternal one.”
When Joonmyun shots his eyes open, he stares into the empty whiteness of the ceilings. Kris is no longer there, but the feeling of his lips against Joonmyun’s skin is still there, too stubborn to go away.
Joonmyun has learned not to count the time, because time is much meaningless that way. But in the modern world he is living now, it would be hard not to steal a glance at the golden watch with crooked hands securely tied around his left wrist.
The chiming of the church’s bell has distracted him from his time counting. It is the day of his younger brother’s wedding, and as his older brother, Joonmyun has to look undeniably good today. The black suit tailored to fit his frame feels nice against his body, he has to give his mother credits for that.
He joins his brother as the wedding is about to start. Jongin looks truly happy, and Joonmyun feels so proud at that very moment. He gives Jongin a reassuring squeeze of on his shoulder, because his younger brother looks like he needs it. Their mother is watching with teary eyes. They are happy.
It has been another two years since his encounter with Kris, and Joonmyun starts to question the length of time the blond hair is lending him.
Nothing has changed much, except the dreams about the certain blond hair are even more vivid. Each night, Joonmyun would think about the feelings of lips against lips, skin against skin, the smell of Kris’ cologne, the heat pooled in his lower stomach as Kris nips against his collarbone. Each night, the imagination goes even wilder.
His body longs for the touches Kris left that one night. His body craves for more. Everytime he opens his eyes, he wishes that it were Kris’ face he sees first time in the morning instead of another pillow lying cold next to him.
Two years, and the feelings don’t change in the slightest bit.
Marriage is a sensitive issue. Jongin has hesitated about bringing the topic in, because he knew that their mother would want Joonmyun to marry first. But Joonmyun is not in the position to have interest in marriage. It takes a lot to convince their mother that it is okay for Jongin to marry.
And it is, truly, okay. Joonmyun is happy too, to see his younger brother being all grown up and responsible to take another big step in his life. He doesn’t feel envy even the slightest.
A lot of questioning eyes and whispers fall upon him as he walks down the aisle as his brother’s best man. He doesn’t need to hear to understand that it’s mostly the ‘When is the oldest son going to marry, then?’ questions heaving in the air. It is Jongin’s happy day, and Joonmyun needs to concentrate only for that. He needs to cherish that very moment.
It happens so fast, how Jongin recites the wedding vow and slides the ring into his partner’s finger. They seal the vow with kiss, and the crowd applauses, being happy for the newlywed couple. Joonmyun watches every single of the process, recording each minute and each second to his mind. This kind of thing only happens once in a lifetime, and he doesn’t want to miss it.
As the guests are divided into little groups of their own, Joonmyun skirts away from the crowd. He takes small walks towards a quiet corner at the back of the church, just before a beautiful garden that is tended with care.
This is where he meets time for the third time.
Kris is leaning against the stonewall of the church just casually. He is dressed neatly, like he is prepared to blend into the wedding. Joonmyun is a hundred percent sure that the blonde is not in the wedding’s guest list. Kris isn’t someone Jongin would know, or be friends with. He is not Jongin’s type. Jongin likes certainty, and Kris is never a certain thing. Because until now Joonmyun isn’t certain if he knows who is the man standing before him.
“Why are you here?” There is no hint of hesitation or nervousness in Joonmyun’s voice. He feels braver this time, like Kris is already familiar to him and no longer a stranger, like he has known Kris for a lifetime.
Kris chuckles, he is now walking towards Joonmyun. The gap between them is so little that Joonmyun can smell the faint hit of Kris’ cologne. Just a jerk of movement and Joonmyun would be in Kris’ arms already, but both of them stubbornly keep their hands to their sides.
“Congratulations for your brother’s wedding,” Kris says earnestly, and Joonmyun is touched.
“Thank you. I will rely that to him.” Joonmyun is assuming that Kris would never have contact with his brother. It is a selfish thought. He starts to feel guilty for having the thought.
“I honestly thought you would marry before him. You seem like the type.”
Joonmyun tilts his head slightly in confusion, “What type?”
“I don’t know, you just seem like it,” Kris shrugs. It is the first time Joonmyun sees him acting nervous. “So, why?”
“I guess I’m not up for that,” Joonmyun shies away from the piercing gaze again because suddenly it feels too much. He feels warm, due to the close distance between them despite that there’s still more room for use if they want to. “Besides, it’s not my own time to begin with.”
“I told you that I gave it to you so you can enjoy it. Why are you so stubborn? You should be happy with the extended time, because that’s what you asked for.”
“You don’t understand,” Joonmyun says hurriedly. Kris looks so intimidating, and he wants to dig a hole and bury himself in it, hiding from the powerful gaze. “This-the time, is yours.”
It takes a moment with heavy silence between them before it finally strikes Kris, creating an understanding between the two of them. Kris’ expression softens down, the eyes are not so much intimidating anymore. Joonmyun glances up nervously, afraid if his words go wrong and screw everything-anything-between them.
“It’s mine,” Kris whispers, leaning down just at Joonmyun’s ears so the shorter shivers as Kris’ warm breath meets his sensitive skin. He circles his arm around Joonmyun’s waist and pulls him closer. Now it’s almost skin-to-skin, if only the clothes don’t get in the way. Even being that close is not enough, both of them keep craving for more.
“Always yours,” Joonmyun mewls lightly as Kris pulls his lower lip between his teeth. The kiss is even better from the first time. It is more heated, more desperate, because now they know what to seek from each other. They bring each other to completion.
As their tongues glide together, they understand that it’s not only his time Joonmyun submits to Kris, but also the wholeness of himself-his everything. And he won’t regret this.
The church’s bell chimes again, bringing back Joonmyun to the surface of reality. When he opens his eyes, Kris is no longer there. He should have known, but still it hurts him to once again lose the figure. Tears are edging on his eyes, but he quickly wipes them away.
The breeze of wind messes up his neatly styled hair, bringing him a message he doesn’t even know he longs for:
“Until we meet again, Kim Joonmyun.”
“When?” He asks the wind. His lift his chin up in a hopeful way, because maybe the wind carries him the answer for that as well. But the wind doesn’t answer, leaving him feeling empty.
‘When’ turns out to be very soon.
Joonmyun doesn’t count the time, but he knows that it’s barely a month since his brother’s wedding. The happy and lovey dovey air is still heavy around. His mother smiles more often, and Joonmyun is happy to see that. He moves into his parents’ house because Jongin has to move out with his partner and build their own home.
Her mother is getting older, and she nags more. Joonmyun has a difficulty adapting as the target of all of her nags. He wonders how his younger brother could be immune to all of this. He secretly misses his wide and spacious apartment. He misses waking up not worrying about how he should face his mother with a strong expression because she would question him if it were otherwise.
This morning though, instead of the sound of alarm waking him up, a pair of strong hands shakes him out of his deep slumber. He wants to protest so bad, because he hates it when his beautiful dream is disturbed. But it would be considered as rude to his mother.
“What-Kris?” Joonmyun’s half-lidded eyes automatically shot up into a fully awake mode as he sees the familiar blond head. His mother is nowhere to see, so it must be the other man who shook him awake. One of his dreams is to wake up to Kris’ face in the morning and gets a good morning kiss. Now Kris is already here, but he doesn’t get a kiss.
Kris looks panicked. Never once in his life Joonmyun sees the blonde so out of his usual composed self. Joonmyun reaches out to stroke Kris’ cheekbones, causing the taller man to close his eyes and enjoy the ministrations.
“As much as I love the surprise of waking up to see you, I have a strong feeling that there is something wrong,” Joonmyun murmurs. “Why are you here?”
“He has found out,” Kris says as he flutters his eyes open. “I’m sorry. I was so selfish to think that I can keep you with me for a lifetime. I have broken so many rules of life, yet I still think that I can hide you away from him. You probably hate me now, and it’s okay, really.”
Joonmyun frowns, “Slow down. I don’t understand. What are you talking about? Who is he?”
“Death. He wants to take you away from me.”
“One rule is that you can not cheat death, but if time is your wish, I can lend you some of mine.”
“But I’m not cheating death.”
“No, but I am cheating him.” Kris looks so guilty. Joonmyun wants to hug him and reassures that everything is okay, but he knows it’s not. What happening now is beyond him, and he feels cheated.
“Kris, who are you really?” Joonmyun asks-no, he begs for the truth he deserves to know in his four years of living.
“I am The Time. The one who watches the ticking of the clocks. The man who makes sure that sun rises and sets in the right intervals. The shadow behind everyone’s head, because everyone needs time.” Kris looks more distance as he speaks, like he is no longer the man Joonmyun dreams about every night. “I became selfish, I want you for myself. I want to have you forever. I heard you asking for more time, and I granted that wish, simply because I want to keep you away from Death longer.”
“He is furious now, because the time I am giving you is too much. He was supposed to take you four years ago, but I didn’t let him. He is asking for you now, and I still don’t know if I can let you go. Having you by my side these four years had me spoiled, Joonmyun. I don’t want to lose you, not especially to him.”
Joonmyun’s brain is too small to digest all the information suddenly poured into his head. So instead of thinking, he settles on pressing a desperate kiss onto Kris’ lips instead. And it’s been proven that kiss is a great distractor.
“He is approaching,” Kris says, his voice is quavering. Joonmyun can sense the fear radiating from him. “I will bring you to a safe place.”
Kris pulls out the hourglass hiding behind his shirt. Joonmyun can finally sees that it’s golden, and has the same design with the watch Kris given him a long time ago.
“Turn it twice whenever Death is approaching, it will save you,” Kris hurriedly explains. He takes off the necklace from his neck and puts it around Joonmyun’s pale neck. The press of kiss against Joonmyun’s collarbone is totally accidental, but it’s a gesture that calms their nerves, somehow.
“Where will you be going then?” Joonmyun asks softly.
“I will face him, buying more time for you.”
“What if he kills you?”
“Then I die,” Kris inhales deeply. “If I die then everything is gonna be useless. The Chaos will be awakened, he will join Death in destroying the human civilization. Together, they bring the world to an end.”
Joonmyun shivers, the air is suddenly very chilly. Death is coming closer. “I can’t let that to happen, Kris. I’d better submit myself to death than to selfishly cause the world to end.”
He takes off the hourglass necklace Kris put on him earlier, and shoves it back to the blonde’s hand. Kris’s lips are pursed into a thin line. He doesn’t seem to be so keen to the idea.
“Why are you so stubborn, especially now?” There are tears pooling at the edge of Kris’ eyes. He looks so fragile and vulnerable now. Joonmyun pulls him into a tight, bone-crushing hug.
“I love you,” he whispers.
Joonmyun knows when The Death is coming.
Time stands still, but he is able to move and feel. At the corner of his eyes, he sees dark, blackness, and emptiness. The darkness starts to consume his room, black blotches appearing here and there before they pool together and makes it a complete block of blackness.
He thinks of his mother, and how she would be the first person to find his corpse lying in his bedroom. Maybe she would cry out loud, or even wail. Jongin’s complete happiness would be destroyed once the news reaches him. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun would be at loss, what was once they saved is never saved in the first place.
Kris.
As time freezes, Joonmyun understands on how much Death is stronger than Time. He learns that Death is really the end to everything, even to Time. When you are dead, time is no longer ticking. You don’t need to count the seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months; because there is no such thing anymore.
But time is also a version of hope. If you still have time, you are allowed to hope.
So Joonmyun hopes, that maybe in the next lifetime, he would be meet The Time again.
“Until we meet again, Kris.”
Joonmyun presses one last kiss to Kris’ forehead before the darkness starts to crawl onto his bed and consume him from the toe. The tears rolling down on his cheeks are warm, a contrary to the striking coldness creeping up his body. His body feels weak, like it is the cancer getting into him all over again.
Except this time, there will be no successful operation anymore. There’s only him, and the darkness consuming him. He closes his eyes, unable to take in anything again.
And that’s how Kim Joonmyun parts his way with time.
South Korea, year of 3056
Technology has advanced almost everything in human’s life. Without machine, life as a future human would be helpless. But not everyone could afford machines to support their daily lives. This is the start of New Seoul, a city built for those who are rich enough to pay for the machines and their maintenance costs. Almost everyone in New Seoul lives with a robot in their house, mostly for helping.
Humans are still humans, but they almost their humanities without them knowing.
Technology has made human lifeless. It’s always clean and punctual in New Seoul. They live according to the time they are allowed to. Everyone has a timepiece for their own, one that is customed to suit each individuals wearing them. Be late for a second, you might as well end your life there. The rate of suicide is becoming higher, because the pressure of living in the city is always haunting them.
Those who can’t stand advanced technologies prefer to stay safe in the Old Seoul, the broken city. The government doesn’t care about the city anymore, as they focus only to the New Seoul. Here in the abandoned city, they live an even more difficult life. It takes a great effort to have food smuggled from the New Seoul, and they are quite pricey. Beautiful buildings that are used to stand tall and proud in their times now only being a kind of reminder of those happy times.
In the secluded corner of the main street is where The Time is hiding.
It is an antique clock shop, one that people wouldn’t care about since the digital era has taken over their lives. In that certain shop is where you could still hear the ticking of the clock’s hands. But people has long forgotten the soothing sound of the ticking, and moved on to the handless clocks and watches instead.
The Time is patient, he never asks for anything as he keeps his eyes on the antique timepieces. He doesn’t mind the digital numbers planted on everyone’s wrist, but there are always times where he misses hearing the ticking sounds when he goes out to buy food or clothes.
He wishes that humans could live to cherish the time, and enjoy each seconds as they tick in.
There was once a human that lives up to his liking, that he showers the human with more time, thinking that it would bring them together for an even longer time. But The Time makes mistakes, too. And he is now left longing for the human again. He sometimes asks The Life if he would bring is human to live once again.
The Life’s stare against him is judging, but The Time doesn’t give up. He visits The Fate, asking if he could have a second chance. Fate has always been kind to him. This time though, she only smiles knowingly at him. And that’s all it takes for The Time to patiently wait inside his antique clock shop.
It is a rainy day and The Time doesn’t expect any visitors at this time. He is about to change the ‘open’ sign to ‘close’ when the bell at his door chimes, signaling a visitor coming in.
“I hope you’re still open?” The man smiles sheepishly. His jet-black hair is drenched wet, so is his pair of fine working suits. From his appearance, it is obvious that he is from the New Seoul.
“Yes, please come in.” The Time politely gestures his visitor to sit on one of the stools. He doesn’t really understand about technology, but he is sure there is a machine to instantly dry the drenched man before him. He just doesn’t have it. No one has machines in the Old Seoul. So he goes to the backroom and pulls out a coat. When he hands it over to the visitor, he looks genuinely surprised.
“Thank you. I will return it later.” He smiles, and The Time finds it so adorable. It’s like sunshine in the middle of darkness, like oasis in the middle of draught. “Why do I have a feeling that this is not the first time you’re lending me something?” The man asks, a hint of nervousness is clear on his face.
“I believe it’s the first time someone from New Seoul comes to my shop,” The Time answers simply. His smile is not leaving his face, the same old mysterious smile. “How may I help you, Sir?”
“Oh, I’m sorry!” There’s a faint pink blush blooming on both of the man’s cheeks. His nervous laugh sounds like a melody to The Time’s ears. The man fishes out something from his trousers’ pocket. It is a neatly folded handkerchief. The smell of the handkerchief brings a familiar feeling to him. “This watch died on me, but I can’t seem to fix it. I heard your shop could fix analog watches.”
The Time pays attention to the way the man unfolds the handkerchief. He wonders what kind of analog watch a citizen of New Seoul would have. But once the handkerchief is completely unfolded, his breath hitches. Lay in it a timepiece, one that The Time knows exactly where and how to get. It is a golden analog watch with exquisite design and crooked hands.
Once, it was his, but he gave it over to his most favorite human.
He reaches to touch the watch, the tremble of his fingers cannot deny the mixed feelings he has pooling in his lower stomach. At the first touch, a surge of memories enters his mind; jet-black hair, blinding smile, pale skin, warm voice.
“Kris.”
The name has a nice ring to his ears, and it is only today that The Time remembers that he once lived to another name.
He looks up, and it suddenly occurs to him why the man before him with the same jet-black hair, same blinding smile, same pale skin, and the same warm voice feels so familiar. He offers the man a soft smile, which is immediately returned. He makes a note to thank the fate later.
“I can fix it, but the cost is quite high,” The Time-Kris-says.
“How much?” The man looks worried.
“Time is priceless, you don’t buy it with money,” Kris starts reciting the familiar words, warmness spreading throughout his body. “I’m asking a lifetime with you, if that’s not a trouble.”
The man chuckles lightly, “No, definitely not a problem.”
And that’s all Kris takes to pull the man’s-Joonmyun’s, his mind reminds him-chin and kiss him like he always has. Together, they bring each other to completion.
“I love you. I never get to say that,” Kris whispers between the kisses.
Joonmyun smiles, and Kris is reminded why he is infatuated with this certain human all over again. “I love you, too.”
And that’s how time claims Kim Joonmyun once again.
--fin.
a/n: yay the sequel! this is more krisho than the previous instalment. i hope everyone is happy since this is a happy ending c:
this is totally unbeta-ed though, and i welcome any of you to help fixing my trashy grammar. sobs.
also, happy birthday bijae bb! i hope this counts as a birthday fic aksdhalksasd ♥ ♥ ♥